Abortions: Right, Wrong or Is it Just the Woman’s Choice?

It is no secret that the UK has one of the highest rates of teen pregnancy in the whole of Europe. With the rise

Abortion: Could you do it?

of teen pregnancy there is also the rise in abortions. Although this may be the case, abortion and pregnancy stretches to the older women in the Britain (unbelievably). The National Statistics of 2008 recorded the total number of abortions in England and Wales to be 195,296 compared to 2007’s 198,499 with the standardised age for this rate to be 18.2 per 1,000 resident woman aged 15-44. This is compared to 2007’s 18.6 per 1,000 people.

While researching for this blog I found some interesting facts about abortion in the UK, such as the highest rate of abortion for both 2008 and 2007 is 36 per 1000, for women aged 19. While those under 16 are 4.2 and under 18 are 18.9. No doubt the newspapers have reported that Britain’s abortion figures are the worst in the whole of the EU.

For years there have been conflicting thoughts about abortions, whether it’s right or wrong for women to have an abortion. Religious groups have always made it their business to voice their opinions about the subject. They question whether or not it is morally right to terminate a pregnancy before normal childbirth. Religious groups believe that the issue encompasses the profound issues of life and death.

There is also the issue of the rights of the unborn child, the UK Abortion Law of 1967 states that an abortion can be preformed up the 24 weeks. This leads to many thoughts of whether or not the foetus is alive during this period. Many argue that if the foetus is not a person then there is no right for abortions to come under scrutiny.

Among many of the issues abortion opens, the reason for a woman to have an abortion is one of the main issues. Many would say that an abortion is the right choice if having a baby endangers the life of the mother. Others would argue of that it is the woman’s choice what she does with her body. Along with mother’s rights, there are also the rights of the father, over the years many fathers have tried to prevent their partners from terminating their children but so far they have all failed. Armin A. Brott, who has been dubbed SuperDad, famously quoted, “A woman can legally deprive a man of his right to become a parent or force him to become on against his will.”

Despise the issues that have surrounded and will always surround the topic of abortion it all really comes down to its infamous keyword. Morality; whether or not the foetus is alive from the time of the egg is fertilized in the womb. Should the father have a say about the issue? Can a woman live with herself after having an abortion? Surely some can, seen as the abortion figures of the UK are so high, but you can’t jump to conclusion about this issue. Maybe it is a woman’s choice, if anyone came up to me and asked me, would I have an abortion. I would be lying if I said no. With all my morals and my Christian upbringing, it still wouldn’t stop me from hesitating when asked the dreaded question. If I were to get pregnant (god forbid) right now, having an abortion would cross my mind, whether or not I would go through with it… that would be another

issue but I can honestly say that it would be the hardest decision I would ever have to make.